The Counter-Terrorism and Security Act of 2015 introduced a formal legal duty to implement Prevent, the so-called ‘Prevent duty’, not only for schools and early years providers but also for further education (FE) providers. The introduction of the Education and Training (Welfare of Children) Act in 2021 extended this duty to all independent training providers (ITPs) and organisations contracted or subcontracted through the Education, Skills Funding Agency.
The Counter-Terrorism Act requires FE and Training sector providers to:
“have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism” as well as requiring them to train “leaders and teachers to exemplify British values in their management, teaching and through general behaviours in institution“.
Prevent duty: Guidance for further education institutions in England and Wales,
Department for Education (DfE), April 2021
This reinforces the links between Prevent and fundamental British values that were laid out for schools and now apply to the FE and Training sector.
Complying with the Prevent duty is a statutory responsibility for all education and training providers. Learners and staff are expected to understand the Prevent duty and how to keep safe from extremism and radicalisation, and to uphold British values, which are defined in the statutory Prevent duty guidance document as:
The statutory Prevent duty guidance is to be read alongside the general guidance in the Revised Prevent Duty Guidance (issued 16th July 2015 and updated 1st April 2021).
